Review of the Harley Davidson Pan America 1250 Special - is it worth it?

You have to pay for a Harley, and it's not cheap. The base version costs 18,000 euros, but this is just the basic variant. For the tested model, which includes everything the factory is able to offer:

As you will see in the comparison below, the price is in line with top competitors. Shouldn't Harley, by offering a new motorcycle for itself and the world of heavy touring enduro, attract a new audience with a slightly lower price? I leave the evaluation to you.

The bare Africa AS with a manual transmission costs 18k euros, quite a bit less than the Pan America Special. By adding active suspension, we still have a much lower price of 19,000 euros.

We're of course talking about the biggest boxer BMW R 1250 GS where the price starts at 18k euros. However, again, adding equipment to the level of the Harley in the Special version takes us around 24k euros.

When deciding on one of the available heavy touring enduros on the market, price will not be the deciding factor because, as you check the offers, all manufacturers place their top machines around 24k euros.

The comfort offered by the Pan America is very good, the position is upright, the seat is comfortable. The Pan America has wide footpegs that become even more enduro if needed; the rubber can be easily removed and the foot brake can be rotated 180 degrees, which facilitates standing riding and operating the brake.

The motorcycle excels during fast intercity rides. This is aided by the cruise control, which works very well above 80 km/h and around 4,000 RPM. If you ride slower and the RPM are at 3,000, it seems to get lost. The engine starts to run unevenly and has trouble maintaining the set speed.

The situation is somewhat worse when it comes to pothole-ridden roads and the road suspension setting. Fortunately, the suspension is dynamically controlled and its supplier is Showa. A few clicks with the right thumb and we change the mode to off-road - it becomes pleasantly soft.

I tested the Harley in heavy rain and the windscreen is very good at blocking it; my legs are well protected and my knees and hands are also shielded thanks to the massive handlebars.

The windshield is adjustable in several stages, but if you are like me and 190 cm tall, it is not sufficient to fully protect you. The airflow hits the helmet at about half the height of the motorcycle helmet visor.

The only downside I noticed is the hot pipe on the right side. It's really hot, and therefore the final comfort rating drops to 3.5 / 5. I accidentally placed my jacket on the turned-off motorcycle, and a part of it simply melted.

A growing pain can be called the falling protective element; the welds broke, and it simply fell off the exhaust manifold. I hope they improve it in the next iteration of this motorcycle.

In total, to the comfort, we can add or rather subtract the fact of lifting the motorcycle; if it falls over, there isn't much to grab onto. A steel part near the passenger seat would be helpful.

The second thing regarding lifting is the unique option of using adaptive suspension. You sit on the motorcycle and when you turn on the ignition, the Pan America lowers to make it easier and more stable for the rider to stand. While riding, it instantly raises back to its original position. When coming to traffic lights or stopping, theoretically, it was supposed to be the same, but during the test, I did not notice that. You can feel it the most when, as I said, you sit on it and turn on the ignition.

In the meantime, we have a plastic with a load capacity of 2.5 kg that is easy to break, even by accident trying to get out of soft terrain. Comfort is rated at 3.5/5.

Here it would seem a huge and heavy motorcycle will also be the same in handling, but Harley surprised me again. This is already the nth Harley I have had the opportunity to test, and like every previous one, except maybe (Road Glide Special), it handles brilliantly! Analyzing the competition, it turns out it has the longest wheelbase in its class, which should again affect its more difficult handling, but this is absolutely not the case. The motorcycle loves corners and leans into them very eagerly. A light pressure on the handlebars and we smoothly enter the counter-steering. Even at lower speeds and in traffic jams, I had no problems controlling it. Both the clutch and brake can be operated with two fingers, and the high-mounted handlebars allow for easy passing of car mirrors. It gets harder off-road; the bike is heavy, and that can't be denied. It will handle obstacles, even on Michelin Scorchery Adventure tires - adventure in name only. I managed to deal with every obstacle: gravel, deep and loose sand, and even mud and puddles. It will go over everything; the only question is how many of you will take it into such terrain? Let's not kid ourselves, 90% of users will be riding on the blacktop and intercity, at most veering onto light gravel on the way to their lot.

Harley Davidson has done a great job offering a motorcycle equipped with the brilliant Revolution Max 1250 engine, which seems to be indestructible. The Pan America, like every new model, has some flaws that will probably be improved with its second iteration. Let's not kid ourselves; a heavy touring enduro made from scratch by a brand that has never had anything to do with them.

Taking this into account, the Americans deserve a big round of applause, as the bike can confidently compete with large players who have been in this market for years. Very good fuel consumption, expensive servicing, excellent riding qualities. There are definitely more pluses than minuses.